The voices, the demons, the darkness
by Skovko
Summary: Finn has a new patient. She killed her parents but he's not sure she has any memory of doing it. He's trying to diagnose her to figure out how to help her the right way. She slowly opens up day by day and takes him into the scary world she lives in.
1. The voices

Finn leaned back in his chair and looked at the new patient Mara. To him she looked like a normal woman. A 21 year old woman with long, wavy, cappuccino brown hair and the darkest brown eyes he had ever seen. They looked black in the right light.

He knew better though. There wasn't anything normal about her. There was a vicious killer hidden inside her. A killer he wasn't sure she knew existed herself. From what little he knew of her so far - and it really wasn't much - he was already working with the theory of her having a split personality.

According to the neighbors she was always a weird kid growing up. Too old for her age, some of them said. Too wise, others said. Finn wasn't sure how anyone could be too wise. Scary, the other kids said. Kids that were now adults too. Kids that were never her friends.

Neighbors had started worrying when they realized no one had seen her parents for a very long time. None of them knew how long. They guessed months. The reality was two years. For two years the corpses of her parents had been rotting inside the house, and no one knew. No one had cared enough. Mara had killed her own parents and lived in the house with their rotting corpses.

"So, Mara, you know why you're here," he started.

She nodded. To him she looked like a scared kid. Not the vicious killer she was.

"Can you tell me a little about it?" He asked.  
"They say I killed them," she said.

She was looking down and fiddling with her sleeve. To him she looked embarrassed. He knew that she knew she had killed them. She accepted that fact when he told her. He wasn't sure she had any memory of it though.

"Can you tell me how you did it?" He asked.  
"I... I think... No, wait, that's not right. I'm sure... Or maybe..." She couldn't finish a sentence.  
"Okay, forget how. Can you tell me why you did it?" He asked.

She looked up into his eyes. Those big, dark brown eyes made her look like some sort of doll.

"The voices spoke to me," she said.  
"The voices?" He asked.

Up until that point he had been sure she had a split personality. Now it looked more like she might be schizophrenic. If that was the case, it changed the ball game. He had to think of other ways to cure her. Other types of medicine, other ways of therapy.

"They're scary," she said.  
"I bet," he smiled warmly. "Tell me about them."  
"It's not the voices you should fear. It's where they come from that's the scary part," she said.  
"And where do they come from?" He asked.


	2. The demons

Finn looked at Mara. Someone had put her in a plush pink sweater and it made her look even more innocent. Yesterday had ended with a question. A question about the voices she heard. A question she hadn't answered. She had just smiled at him at started twirling a lock of her hair around her fingers. She shut down mentally. He had to give her a break to be ready again.

Every case, every patient was intriguing to him. A mystery he needed to solve. Like a 5000 pieces puzzle that sometimes took months or even years to finish. He had the patience. He never gave up. Every patient mattered. He took pride in fixing a broken brain.

"How are you feeling today, Mara?" He asked.  
"I'm okay," she answered.  
"Did you eat?" He asked.  
"Lunch was boring," she answered.  
"What did they serve?" He asked.  
"Mashed potatoes. They forgot to add salt," she answered.  
"Bummer," he said.

He made a face to show he was on her side. He knew all along what she had been served. He was just trying to make smalltalk to make her open up and trust him.

"Can we talk about why you're here?" He asked.  
"I guess," she shrugged.

She looked down and fiddled with her sleeve like she had done the day before. He had seen it many times with other patients. Some sort of way to try and hide their embarrassment. It never worked. He knew it as well as the patients did. He never called them out on it though.

"Yesterday you mentioned the voices. Can we talk about them today?" He asked.  
"What do you wanna know?" She asked.  
"Where do they come from?" He asked.  
"The demons," she answered.  
"The demons?" He questioned.

He was still working with the theory of her being schizophrenic. Maybe she wasn't just hearing voices. Maybe she saw beings that weren't there. Demons. It wouldn't be the first time.

"These demons," he said. "Do they tell you to do things?"  
"They're scary," she said.  
"I can imagine. I've never heard of a friendly demon," he said.  
"It's not the demons you should fear. It's where they're hiding that's the scary part," she said.  
"And where do they hide?" He asked.


	3. The darkness

Finn looked at Mara. She was in a baby blue dress. Her hair hang in two braids. She really looked like a doll again. He knew it was her own clothes but he couldn't help but wonder if someone on his staff made sure to pick the most doll-like clothes or if she chose it herself. He had to check her closet at one point.

"How are you feeling today, Mara?" He asked.  
"Same as yesterday," she answered.

She looked at him with those big, dark brown eyes. The childish hairstyle of two braids sure wasn't helping to make her look like an adult. Her doll-like appearance and her innocence were slowly creeping under his skin, and he wasn't sure if he liked it or not.

"Can we talk about the demons today?" He asked.  
"Maybe," she answered. "It depends on what you wanna know."  
"Do they control you?" He asked.  
"Sometimes," she answered.

He looked down at his paper. The word "schizophrenic" was right there on top. He was about to scratch it over with his pen. He wasn't too sure anymore. If she thought they were in control of her, inside of her somehow, maybe he needed to look elsewhere.

"Do you wanna talk to a priest?" He asked.  
"I already did. Mom made me talk to one," she said.  
"How did that go?" He asked.  
"Not well," she answered.  
"Can you remember his name?" He asked.  
"Father Brock Lesnar. He was mean," she said.

He chuckled at that comment. He wrote down the priest's name. He would like to get a talk with the man if he could find him.

"He's dead," she said.  
"Oh," he looked up. "I'm sorry to hear that."  
"Everyone dies," she said.

She looked down and fiddled with the hem of her dress. The dress had short sleeves so she couldn't fiddle with a sleeve like she had done the previous two days. She almost looked guilty for a priest dying. Finn was beginning to question if she had been brainwashed. If she had grown up in a weird cult that had convinced her she was possessed by a demon. If it was brainwash, it should be an easy fix. Medicine wouldn't be needed.

"Yesterday you said the demons are hiding some place scary," he said.

She nodded and kept her eyes down.

"Can you tell me where?" He asked.  
"The darkness," she answered.  
"The darkness?" He questioned.  
"It's scary," she said.  
"What happens if you turn on the light?" He asked.

She raised her head slowly and looked into his eyes.

"It's not the darkness you need to fear," she said.  
"What do I need to fear?" He asked.  
"Don't ask questions you don't wanna know the answer to," she said.  
"But I do wanna know," he smiled. "I wanna help you."  
"No one can help me," she said.


	4. Me

For the fourth day in a row Finn looked at Mara. She was wearing a pair of white shorts and a coral red t-shirt. Her hair was put up in a high ponytail. She still looked like a doll to him.

"How are you feeling today, Mara?" He asked.  
"You always start with the same question," she said.  
"Do I?" He chuckled. "I hadn't thought about it. But it is important for me to know how you're feeling."

She just shrugged. He knew it couldn't be easy for her to be in a mental hospital despite being well aware of what she had done. She knew she needed help. She seemed to understand everything he told her. She wasn't causing any trouble at all.

"Can we talk about the darkness today?" He asked.  
"I told you yesterday," she said.  
"I would like to know more," he said.

He looked down at his paper. The word "brainwash" had been added to his small list of ideas what could be wrong with her.

"It's not the darkness you need to fear. It's where the darkness is hiding, and what's hidden inside the darkness. It's one and the same," she said.  
"It's connected?" He asked.

She nodded, looked down and fiddled with the hem of her t-shirt. He was expecting this kind of behavior from her by now.

"What's inside the darkness?" He asked.  
"The same as the darkness is inside," she answered.  
"A riddle," he smirked. "Alright, what's the darkness inside?"

She raised her head with a smile. Not a warm and friendly smile. Her smile was cruel, and it made his blood run cold.

"Me," she said.

She stood up from the chair and slowly walked around the table to get to him while she spoke. Around her he heard whispers. He didn't believe in demons but that was exactly how he would describe the voices. Like demons.

"I am the voice of the demons. I am the body they get to play with. They made me their queen!" She said.

She grabbed his throat, yanked him up from the chair, pushed him up against the wall and slowly lifted him up. His feet dangled in the air. He couldn't believe the strength she possessed. The demon-like whispers turned to dark shadows. He watched as the shadows entered her one by one. Her eyes turned black, and she seemed stronger for each shadow that went inside her.

"Turn on the light?" She mocked him. "I am the darkness!"

He clawed on her arm and tried kicking her while she held him up in the air. Nothing worked. She kept her arm stretched while grinning evilly at him while his life slowly ended. Once his heart stopped beating, she let go of him. His body crashed to the floor. She tilted her head and smiled. She started humming a happy tune while she walked out of his office. Outside of the door she ran into another caretaker. A man by the name Cedric Alexander.

"Hi, Mara," he smiled. "You're done already?"  
"Finn's done," she smiled back. "Will you talk to me tomorrow?"  
"Like this, yes. But Finn is your assigned therapist," he said.  
"You'll talk to me tomorrow," she said. "Can I have an apple?"  
"Sure, go get one in the kitchen," he said.

She started humming again as she walked down the hallway towards the kitchen. Behind her she heard Cedric scream as he entered Finn's office.

"Finn? Oh my god! Help! I need help in here!" He yelled.


End file.
